


Expectations

by Aeriel



Category: The Goblin Emperor - Katherine Addison
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Developing Relationship, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-09
Updated: 2016-02-09
Packaged: 2018-05-18 11:47:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5927236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aeriel/pseuds/Aeriel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maia broaches the delicate subject of marital... etiquette.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Expectations

**Author's Note:**

  * For [alessandriana](https://archiveofourown.org/users/alessandriana/gifts).



> Thanks to my beta!

This was not how Csethiro had envisioned her life.

An auspicious marriage arranged without her consent, yes, that she had been braced for to some degree since childhood, even if she had often wished, privately and passionately, that she might find a way to escape the rigid existence that any girl child born at court to the Ceredada was fated to lead. For such a marriage to be arranged between herself and the _Emperor_ had never crossed her mind, not even after the disaster that had so thoroughly rearranged the line of succession as to bring a largely forgotten half-goblin boy to Court.

And yet what truly astonished Csethiro was that as the day of the wedding drew nearer she found herself-- there was no other way to put it-- _happy._

Maia was not like the men she had known since childhood. His actions were measured, but earnest. He asked questions because he truly wished to know the answer. He was gentle, but he was not weak. He had dignity, yet he was not ruled by his pride.

He knew Csethiro had a mind, and he valued it.

Once she realized that no one had ever bothered teaching Maia to dance, she took it upon herself to offer guidance, and he graciously accepted.

The lessons proved to be worthwhile not only for practical reasons, but as a means for Csethiro to spend time with Maia, the man himself, rather than Edrehasivar VII, the Emperor. Which was, if anything, an even rarer pleasure for Maia than for her.

“All in all, I’m very impressed with thy progress! I don’t believe you should have any cause for anxiety come our wedding day, aside from the entirely natural anxiety caused by being buried under all those layers of ceremonial clothing.”

Maia laughed, but there was something not entirely light in his manner. "Well, there is… _one_ matter that causes me anxiety." Maia's ears lowered.

"What matter is that?"

There was a pause, as Maia avoided her eyes. Csethiro was just beginning to become truly concerned when he finally blurted out, "I know very little of… of marital etiquette."

Csethiro strongly suspected his final word had been a hasty substitution. "Etiquette?"

Maia looked as though he wanted to sink into the floor. "What I meant to say was, once the ceremony is over, there is a great deal that remains… a mystery, at present."

And her suspicions proved correct. Csethiro hesitated a moment, feeling heat prickle her face. "Maia, hast thou been… educated?"

She cursed her bluntness the moment she saw his shocked face. _Thou hast insulted his intelligence again, idiot._

"Broadly speaking, yes," Maia said, a touch acidly. "Hast thou?"

"Well enough," Csethiro lied. In truth she had been told nothing, save that women could get with child, and it was only her reading that had given her any sort of understanding of the variety that might be expected of her. "If that is not thy concern, then please save me the mortification of saying something foolish again and simply tell me what worries thee."

Maia relaxed visibly. "We are friends, are we not?"

The question surprised Csethiro. "Well, yes, I suppose we are."

"Are we to be friends up until we are husband and wife?" He must have seen something in her expression, for he quickly added, "What I mean to say is, when must it change? _Must_ it change? How are we to bridge the gap?"

The plural _we_ , encompassing the both of them. It warmed Csethiro somehow, to hear it from his lips. "I'm afraid I have no idea. If it's court protocol you're curious about, I can tell you we've already deviated significantly from the usual, so that's no use. If, however, my own feelings are in question…" She hesitated, then decided to plow ahead. "Well, you needn't worry on my account. I've er, no more personal experience than I imagine you have, of course, but I must confess to a certain curiosity regarding the proceedings that is far from disgust." _Oh dear, shut up._

Maia's eyebrows quirked and she could have sworn she saw a trace of pleasure. "Curiosity?"

He really had to stop encouraging her to go on like this. "Well, yes, but…What I mean to say is, whatever gap there may have been before, I think you can rest easy in the knowledge that you've already laid the foundation." Now she _knew_ she was blushing. "Well, to lay this rather overly politic metaphor aside, I promise you this much, Maia-- I’m content to do this duty. And, well, I won’t laugh if you won’t.”

Maia gave her a shy smile. “I would never laugh at thee. _With_ thee, always.” When she smiled back, he continued, seriously.“You spoke of curiosity before. I too, feel… curiosity. However, I also feel, as you say, duty. I cannot pretend our marriage is simply a matter between you and I. It is not just the burden of being my wife that I’ve asked you to carry, but also that of my Empress, and speaking frankly, as an Emperor and Empress we will not lead private lives. If we… if we begin our relationship thus, it seems to me all too easy to let others color our perceptions, and for us to lose each other in the roles we must play. And truthfully, I had hoped that we would find ourselves bound by more than duty and good will.”

He had gone and surprised her again, with thoughtfulness and bold, heartfelt idealism. Csethiro’s cheeks heated. "By passion, you mean?"

“Yes,” Maia said simply. “But my ignorance on the subject prevents me from envisioning ways to deepen our acquaintance that are not, well… that is to say…” He stopped, clearly too embarrassed to continue, not that Csethiro blamed him in the least.

Well, Csethiro absolutely refused to let embarrassment get the best of her.

Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed Maia quickly on the mouth.

She had shocked Maia's nohecharei, that much was evident, but Csethiro cared little for Beleshar's stark disapproval or Cala's apparent amusement. Instead she studied Maia's wide eyes and pricked ears, and prayed she had not frightened him by being so forward.

“That… that was…” Maia’s voice was breathless. Slowly, his shy smile emerged again, and Csethiro relaxed.

He had been very isolated, she remembered, several moments too late of course. Very likely he had not befriended many others when he was a child, let alone played at kissing with any agemates in later years.

Maia’s hand moved on her arm, and she saw him swallow. “Again? I mean, er--”

Csethiro didn’t give him a chance to apologize for his desires.

Now she knew she was welcomed, she allowed herself to linger a bit, grow accustomed to the feel of his mouth. There was much she did not know— _so_ much, but she at least knew how not to bang her nose against her partner’s. And she knew, now, that this was very different from being persuaded to kiss a friend who was pretending to be royalty Csethiro had just rescued from a fearsome beast.

“Csethiro…” His eyes were still wide, but there was an unmistakable increase of color in Maia’s greyish cheeks.

“Didst thou not feel exceptionally dutiful? _I_ did,” Csethiro teased.

He let out a choked little laugh, and for a moment they simply went on smiling at each other. Then, seemingly on impulse, Maia touched his fingers to the beads braided intricately in her hair. When their eyes met, he froze, rather to Csethiro’s confusion.

“Ah, pardon me.” Maia’s ears lowered.

“Why? It did not hurt, I assure thee. Thou needn’t ask permission for such a small thing.” Csethiro grasped his hand, which appeared to be attempting to disappear up a heavily embroidered sleeve, and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. “Like so.”

Maia’s ears lifted, reassuring her that she had not overstepped her bounds. Abruptly he pulled her closer, close enough for her to feel his breath on her face. “And so?”

Csethiro laughed. “See? We grow better acquainted already.” As they smiled at each other, she felt a sort of nervous fluttering in her stomach. He was, after all, _very_ close. And his nohecharei were watching them, as always. “But I think it is no bad thing to let our acquaintance take its own course, at whatever pace feels most natural,” she blurted out, suddenly self-conscious. “We need not… rush things.”

Maia looked surprised. “Well, yes, I quite agree.”

Csethiro had not truly believed he would feel otherwise, but the confirmation came as a relief all the same. “Truthfully, there is much I myself do not know about marital etiquette,” she offered

Maia smiled again. “We might learn together, in time.”

 _Together._ She smiled back. “That would be most agreeable.”


End file.
